He stroked a hand over her cheek. “You can open your eyes now. I’m done.”
The light had changed overhead, but she couldn’t tell if it was because she’d lost time or because there was a storm coming. “How long have we been out here?”
“Too long.”
She looked around, cautious of too-quick movements. “Galen?”
“He’s doing what he does best.”
That wasn’t any kind of answer at all. She shuddered. “Shouldn’t we call for help?”
“Doing that just ensures that we’re bringing civilians into this, and paves the way for them to separate us into ambulances and finish the work they started.”
She tried and failed to make sense of that. Galen had seemed to think this wasn’t an accident, but how could someone possibly attack them and then pose as a paramedic? Things like that only happened in fiction, didn’t they? “Theo, what’s going on?”
“We’ll talk about it when we get out of here. I’ve got your wound stabilized. It’s time to move.”
She started to climb to her feet, but he didn’t give her a chance to fail. He scooped her into his arms and started through the trees in the opposite direction of the road. Meg bit her lip to avoid asking him more questions. He was right. Answers could wait. She tucked her face against his neck and tried to keep her shivers contained. There was no telling how much blood she’d lost. What if she needed a transfusion? How would they know or even accomplish it if they were too paranoid to go to a hospital?
I thought I knew the stakes. I had no idea.
“I’ve got you, princess. You’ll be safe.” He murmured against her head as he picked his way through the thick trees.
Germany seemed like such a small country on a map—smaller than many US states—but it might as well have stretched for hundreds of miles in all directions. The forest felt vast and ancient, even though part of Meg’s brain pointed out that the trees couldn’t possibly be as old as her imagination wanted to believe. The danger, she couldn’t write off as easily. “Are there wolves in Germany?”
“I won’t let you turn into a real life Little Red Riding Hood.”
“Oh god. There are totally wolves in Germany,” she whispered. “You know, when I put a pin in this country, I thought for sure that it would be a trip filled with schnitzel and amazing beer and cruising the Rhine and dancing all night with some blond guy named Hans.”
“Hans isn’t a German name, and he sounds like an asshole.”
She smiled against his skin, letting their low conversation distract her from the steady pulse of pain in her arm and the danger all around them. “He was nice in my dream.”
Theo walked for several minutes without saying anything. Just holding her close and watching everything around them. “Why a pin?”
Maybe it was blood loss or maybe it was the terror bleating in the back of her mind, but Meg didn’t even think of lying. “I grew up poor and miserable—things that don’t have to go hand in hand, but they did in my family. It was… ugly. Really ugly. I spent a lot of time fantasizing about running away, but even when I was young and stupid, I knew better. Nothing good happens to runaways. I stayed. I kept my head down as much as I could. And the only thing that got me through it was my map filled with places that I’d someday go. My escape.”
Theo hugged her closer. “When we’re through this, Galen and I will take you on a Rhine river cruise. Fuck, we’ll take you anywhere you want to go.”
“When we’re through this, you’ll be King of Thalania again.” Her eyes were getting heavy, the weights of them pulling her toward the darkness. “I’m really tired, Theo.”
“I know, princess. We’re almost there.”
Almost where?
Light played across the backs of her eyelids and Meg opened them to find them on the edge of a hill. The forest lay behind them and fields upon fields rolled out at their feet over the gentle hills. Theo hitched her higher and readjusted his grip. “See that village?”
She squinted against the weak sunlight, barely making out a little cluster of buildings camped out three hills over. They were some kind of brick or mortar or whatever buildings had been made out of back in the day, and they looked almost as if she and Theo had stepped into a time warp into the past. The steep roofs were a charming red and even at this distance, she could see flower boxes blooming in many of the windows. “I see it.”
“Galen is going to meet us there. And then we’re out of here.”
Out of here.She clutched his shoulder. “What? No. You need that birth certificate.”
“Phillip’s not going to stop coming or sending Dorian and his men after us. If he’s taking these measures before the coronation, then he’s desperate. The whole reason I brought you with us was that I thought our presence would protect you.” Theo gave a sharp laugh. “I should have known better.”
She’d never seen him like this before. Laughing Theo. Sexy Theo. Infuriating Theo.
Never Bitter and Despairing Theo.
